As if the GOP tax bill was not detrimental enough to working families in America, the Trump administration continues to do things that prove detrimental to the majority of citizens. One of the most blatant ones is ensuring that banks and large corporations are provided more incentives to rob their customers, likely to line the pockets of those close to Trump and his cronies.

As a congressman, Mick Mulvaney accepted donations from payday lenders. Now he's in control of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which has delayed implementing payday lending rules. https://t.co/D4V9R8AMLt

Recently, Mick Mulvaney, the Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), announced that he was dropping the agency’s investigation into World Acceptance Corporation, a company known for providing installment loans to low income individuals. The company, which has been under investigation to ensure that they are not taking advantage of consumers who use their services, has been under scrutiny since 2014 (under the Obama administration), and has previously provided contributions and donations to Mulvaney’s congressional campaigns.

The decision to drop the case comes on the heels of Mulvaney’s new budget for the CFPB, wherein he asks the administration to provide zero in funding for the agency. The agency has oversight over predatory lenders and debt collectors who use their position to take advantage of low-income Americans, and ensures equal opportunity for those who may fall victim to such companies. With the request for zero funding being placed by Mulvaney, it becomes increasingly difficult for the CFPB to fund their operations and investigations into various companies. According to a report by Mother Jones,

‘World Acceptance Corporation announced the investigation’s close in a Monday press release that claimed it had received a letter from the CFPB saying that the investigation was complete and that the agency had decided against enforcement action. The company’s PAC also gave at least $4,500 in donations to Mulvaney’s congressional campaigns between 2013 and 2016.’

The investigation was aimed at ensuring that the corporation was abiding by regulations that had been implemented under the Obama administration. The guidelines were in place to safeguard low-income borrowers from banks who would enter them into destructive contracts.

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to demand any correspondence and communications between the corporation and the CFPB, both prior to and after the joining of Mulvaney to the agency. CREW finds it difficult to believe that such a lengthy and ongoing investigation could be closed so quickly under Mulvaney, and finds it concerning that the donor to the Mulvaney campaigns would be released so easily.

NEW: Mick Mulvaney's CFPB just closed a four-year investigation into a payday lender that was also a donor to Mulvaney. We just FOIA'd the records of any communication between Mulvaney and the company. https://t.co/XzNsQa6eiqpic.twitter.com/Ug1EtOmoYR

As more and more predatory lenders and banks attempt to take advantage of low-income Americans in the country, Mulvaney’s move to cease the investigation while implementing a no-budget plan for the upcoming year has struck many as corrupt and controversial. The increasing impact of the Trump administration in empowering corporate forces as opposed to the interests of ordinary citizens has made it clear where the White House’s allegiance lies.